Special Collections

The Library's Special Collections support particular areas of teaching, learning and research, and contain rare, fragile, vulnerable, archival and culturally sensitive material. They include published and unpublished material in print, audiovisual and digital formats.

The Special Collections have limited access conditions which vary according to the purpose and nature of each collection. Unless otherwise noted, items in these collections can be accessed by UniSA staff and students, within the Library which holds them, for a 4 hour period. UniSA staff may borrow most items for teaching and research purposes. Access to fragile or sensitive items and access by community members is at the discretion of Library management.

Detailed information on the development of the Special Collections can be found in the Special Collection Development Policy and its Annex.

For further information about any of these collections, contact Ask the Library.

This collection was created in consultation with local Aboriginal people. It contains culturally secret, sacred or sensitive materials; as well as materials that are considered racist, sexist, derogatory, abusive or offensive to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. It has been separated from the main collection in order to prevent causing offence to both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people, in accordance with Ethical Protocols for Working with Indigenous Australians - AIATSIS Collections.

The collection also includes the Margaret Carnegie gift received by the Library in 1992 which includes books, journals and art exhibition catalogues focusing on early exploration in Australia, colonial anthropology and Aboriginal art.

The collection is located in the Jeffrey Smart Building at City West campus and is accessible by contacting Ask the Library.

Art CollectionArt Collection

This collection covers a large range of art books. It contains rare, vulnerable and fragile titles, valuable limited editions, and some books that may be considered offensive. Some of the titles are past student works.

The collection is located in the Jeffrey Smart Building at City West campus and is accessible by contacting Ask the Library.

Colin Thiele CollectionColin Thiele Collection

Colin Thiele was one of Australia's most prolific and popular writers for children. He was born in 1920 in Eudunda, South Australia and was an English teacher in several Adelaide schools from 1946 to 1957. Thiele joined the staff of the Wattle Park Teachers' College (later known as Wattle Park Teachers' Centre, a predecessor institution of UniSA) as a lecturer in English from 1957 to 1963 and later became Director of the Centre in 1974. Colin Thiele authored more than 50 books and won several awards for his work.

This collection was donated to the Library in 2000 and incorporates most of Mr Thiele's published works and ephemera including several pelicans.

Gavin Walkley was born in North Adelaide in 1911, completed a Bachelor of Engineering (Architecture) in 1934 and was articled to Louis Laybourne Smith from 1931. Walkley began to lecture at the School of Architecture in the South Australian School of Mines and Industries (a predecessor institution of UniSA) and was appointed as Head of School in 1951, a position he held until 1976. Louis Laybourne Smith was a prominent South Australian architect who established Adelaide's first School of Architecture in 1906 at the School of Mines and Industries.

This collection was formed in 1976, upon Gavin Walkley's retirement as the Head of School of Architecture and Building. It includes items previously owned by Louis Laybourne Smith and Gavin Walkley. The initial collection strength was architectural history, with some works in town planning, landscape design, urban design and interiors. The collection includes imprints from 1759 and some facsimile reproductions of classic works. A number of items are very fragile.

Further information about Gavin Walkley and Louis Laybourne Smith is available from the UniSA Architecture Museum.

The collection is located in the Jeffrey Smart Building at City West campus and is accessible by contacting Ask the Library.

History of Primary Education in South Australia (HOPE) CollectionHistory of Primary Education in South Australia (HOPE) Collection

This collection was initiated in 1972 at Wattle Park Teachers' College (a predecessor institution of UniSA) by academic and library staff. It is a collection of textbooks and curriculum material used in South Australian primary schools from the 19th century. It also includes audiovisual and kit material, and a selection of teachers’ lesson plans, school roll books and students' copy books.

The HOPE collection continues to be expanded, with research-significant material relating to primary education in South Australia transferred from the Library’s regular collections.

This collection is located in the Library’s offsite storage facility. All items are listed in the Library Catalogue. These items can be identified by a call number with the prefix HOPE. Requests can be made to transfer items for viewing at other Library locations.

This collection was previously named the David Murray collection, named after an Adelaide philanthropist and politician who in 1903 donated funds to support the establishment of a library for the School of Mines and Industries, one of the predecessors of UniSA.

The collection consists of published and unpublished material in print and digital formats produced by individuals and bodies associated with UniSA and its predecessor institutions. The collection also includes works published by UniSA, works about its activities or otherwise relating to the University.

The collection does not include administrative materials and university records subject to collection by the University's Records Management Policy. Teaching materials, examination papers and honours theses are also excluded from the collection.

The print component of this collection is located in the Library’s offsite storage facility. Print items are listed in the Library Catalogue and can be identified by a call number with the prefix DM. These items can be requested, with pickup from any Library location for a 28 day loan period.